ABSTRACT
Pulsed light technology uses short, high-powered pulses of
broad-spectrum light to reduce microbes on food and food
contact surfaces. The United States Code of Federal
Regulations[1] defines the conditions for the safe treatment
of foods using pulsed light. These conditions include 1) the
radiation sources consist of xenon flash lamps designed to
emit broadband radiation consisting of wavelengths cover-
ing the range of 200-1100 nm, and operated so that the
pulse duration is no longer than 2 msec; 2) the treatment is
used for surface microorganism control; 3) foods treated
with pulsed light shall receive the minimum treatment
necessary to produce the intended effect; and 4) the total
cumulative treatment should not exceed 12.0 J/cm2. A
flash lamp filled with an inert gas, typically xenon, is the
critical component of the system. The excitation of the gas
by high-voltage electrical pulses generates the short-
duration broadband light pulses. The treatment dose is
quantified as “fluence,” which is the dose that reaches the
substrate surface, and is expressed in J/cm2.
